How to Get Properties of a Class Using Reflection in C#

Use Type.GetProperties() method to get all properties of a class in C#. First, get the Type object of the class using typeof(ClassName) or instance.GetType(), then call GetProperties() to retrieve an array of PropertyInfo objects representing each property.

Syntax

To get properties of a class using reflection, follow these steps:

• Get the Type object of the class using typeof(ClassName) or instance.GetType().
• Call GetProperties() on the Type object to get an array of PropertyInfo objects.
• Use the PropertyInfo objects to access property names, types, and values.

csharp

Type type = typeof(ClassName);
PropertyInfo[] properties = type.GetProperties();
foreach (PropertyInfo property in properties)
{
    Console.WriteLine(property.Name);
}

Example

This example shows how to get and print all property names and their values from an instance of a class using reflection.

csharp

using System;
using System.Reflection;

public class Person
{
    public string Name { get; set; }
    public int Age { get; set; }
    private string Secret { get; set; } = "hidden";
}

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        Person person = new Person { Name = "Alice", Age = 30 };
        Type type = person.GetType();
        PropertyInfo[] properties = type.GetProperties(BindingFlags.Public | BindingFlags.Instance);

        foreach (PropertyInfo property in properties)
        {
            object value = property.GetValue(person);
            Console.WriteLine($"{property.Name}: {value}");
        }
    }
}

Output

Name: Alice
Age: 30

Common Pitfalls

Common mistakes when using reflection to get properties include:

• Not specifying binding flags and missing non-public or static properties.
• Trying to get values of properties without an instance (for instance properties).
• Assuming GetProperties() returns properties in any guaranteed order.

Always specify BindingFlags if you want to include private or static properties, and use an instance when getting values of instance properties.

csharp

/* Wrong: Missing BindingFlags, so private properties are not included */
PropertyInfo[] props = typeof(Person).GetProperties();

/* Right: Include private and public instance properties */
PropertyInfo[] allProps = typeof(Person).GetProperties(BindingFlags.Public | BindingFlags.NonPublic | BindingFlags.Instance);

Quick Reference

Summary of key methods and flags for getting properties via reflection:

Method/Flag	Description
typeof(ClassName)	Gets the Type object for a class.
instance.GetType()	Gets the Type object from an instance.
GetProperties()	Returns public instance properties by default.
GetProperties(BindingFlags)	Returns properties filtered by binding flags.
BindingFlags.Public	Includes public properties.
BindingFlags.NonPublic	Includes private, protected, and internal properties.
BindingFlags.Instance	Includes instance properties.
BindingFlags.Static	Includes static properties.

Key Takeaways

Use Type.GetProperties() to retrieve properties of a class via reflection.

Specify BindingFlags to include non-public or static properties as needed.

Use an instance to get values of instance properties with PropertyInfo.GetValue().

Reflection does not guarantee property order; do not rely on it.

Private properties require BindingFlags.NonPublic to be accessed.